Silicon Valley Bank’s UK arm paid out more than £15m in bonuses days after bailout
The UK arm of Silicon Valley Bank paid out more than £15m in bonuses days after being saved from collapse by a bailout organized by the Bank of England.
The UK arm of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) has paid out over £15m in employee bonuses just days after being saved from collapse by a bailout organized by the Bank of England.
Days after bankruptcy relief payments to staff, including senior executives, were approved HSBC this week According to Sky News.
The bonus pool was described as “modest”, with sources claiming it totaled between £15m and £20m.
Another official said the payments were a sign of HSBC’s confidence in its talent base and that the buyer was keen to honor previously agreed payments to retain key staff.
A spokeswoman for HSBC UK said: “We have honored these previously agreed payments in order to preserve our human resources and demonstrate our confidence in SVB UK.”
The UK arm of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) has paid out more than £15m in employee bonuses just days after employees were saved from bankruptcy.
The amount paid to British bank chief executive Erin Platts, who was transferred to the UK division in 2007, has not been confirmed.
The amount paid to UK bank chief executive Erin Platts or her senior colleagues was not confirmed.
SVB UK is led by American Erin Platts, who first joined the US parent company in 2004 before moving to the UK in 2007 and becoming UK and European boss in 2019.
According to Sky News, SVB UK was pushed to the brink of bankruptcy last weekend due to the woes of its US parent company.
Platts earlier this month tried to reassure customers hours before the Bank of England stepped in, saying the business was an independent entity with its own governance and balance sheet.
It is believed that the bonuses would not have been given to the employees if the bank had not been acquired solvency.
HSBC has acquired SVB’s UK arm, securing deposits worth £6.7 billion for over 3,000 customers for just £1 this month.
No taxpayer money is involved and customer deposits are protected. According to the UK Treasury.
The sudden collapse of SVB’s US parent company was the biggest bank failure since the 2008 financial crisis, shocking global markets.
Bonuses were also paid out to U.S. staff hours before the bank collapsed, according to reports last week.
U.S. parent company SVB Financial Group said on Friday, days after its former division, Silicon Valley Bank, was acquired by U.S. regulators, under court supervision seeking an asset buyer under Section 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. announced that it has applied for organizational restructuring.
Founded in 1982, SVB was the largest bank in Silicon Valley and specialized in lending to start-up technology companies.
